The impact of OECD‐PISA results on Japanese educational policy

The author describes the results of PISA, including those of 2015 and Japan's reaction, as well as their impact. Highly‐ranked in PISA, Japan has always tried to improve its education system. The promotion of reading comprehension remains an important issue and low interest and motivation to learn subjects are crucial problems. The author discusses these questions and reform policies from a Japanese point of view. He explains the latest reform plan which will be implemented in 2020. The Japanese peculiarity in education is referred to in the conclusion.     

Education policy in Poland: The impact of PISA (and other international studies)

The impact of the PISA study on Polish education policy has been significant, but probably different from any other country. Poland has not experienced the so‐called ‘PISA shock’, but its education system has been benefiting considerably from PISA. For experts and policy makers, it has been a useful and reliable instrument that has made it possible to measure the effects of consecutive reforms of the school education system. Moreover, PISA and other international studies have influenced the perception of education policy in Poland. The latter has shifted from an ideology‐driven, centralised policy to an evidence‐informed policy, developed with the involvement of multiple stakeholders, although this has mostly affected the thinking of experts and policy makers rather than the general public. The new government (in power from 2015), following public opinion polls, has reversed most of the previous education reforms, eliminating lower secondary schools introduced in 1999.     

The danger of inadequate conceptualisation in PISA for education policy

Due to the broad acceptance of the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) and other comparative studies as instruments of policymaking, its accuracy is essential. This article attempts to demonstrate omissions in the conceptualisation, and consequently in calculation and interpretation, of one of the central points of PISA 2006 and 2009. The authors point to the danger of such omissions for possible evidence-based education policymaking. With regard to the reproduction of social inequalities through education, we focus on variance in student performance between schools and within schools on the science scale (PISA 2006) and in the mother tongue (PISA 2009). The thesis of the PISA study is that there are countries (Finland, Iceland and Norway) where between only 14 and 29% of the average OECD variance (33%) is attributed to between-school variance – which is good – and there are countries (Germany, Bulgaria, Austria, Hungary, Belgium, Slovenia, the Netherlands, etc.), where the variance between schools is at least ‘one-and-a-half times that of the OECD’ – which is bad. For Slovenia, we demonstrate a significantly different share of variance explained by between-school variance of the same or similar cohort if we move the point of research by only nine months. Our main argument is that such a difference in the share of variance is not the result of a substantial change in the results (grooving difference in the performance) but the result of formal organisational change – the transition of the cohort to upper secondary education. The difference in calculations also radically changes policy implications, which is crucial. While PISA data suggest the necessity of policy measures to reduce between-school variance, our calculations suggest the need for reconsideration of policy measures aimed at the reduction of within-school variance, gender differences, and differences in performance between native and immigrant students.     

PISA and education reform in Shanghai

This article examines how Chinese education officials interpret and utilise selective information from Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) to legitimate and consolidate contested reform messages and initiatives in Shanghai. A content analysis of data obtained from newspaper articles, official documents and education essays published in China yielded two key findings. First, Chinese officials turn to PISA data to highlight the existing problems of academic burden and ‘school choice fever’ that validate the need for reform. Second, they aim to garner support for on-going reform initiatives that seek to redefine the aims and nature of education in Shanghai. In both instances, the education officials do not just rely on the resources from PISA to advance local reforms. They also re-interpret the information in such a way that allows them to create new possibilities and realities. The example of Shanghai illustrates the symbiotic relationship between PISA/Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and the domestic education system that is characterised by both dependence and independence.     

PISA研究的政策导向探析

PISA是一项在各参与国政府共同利益驱动下开展的政策导向研究,其政策导向主要包括效能、竞争力导向、终身学习导向、社会公平导向和成本效益导向。我国开展教育质量监测和评价的目的也是为了改进教育政策,因此PISA研究的政策导向能够给予我国教育质量监测和评价以启示。     

PISA as an ideational roadmap for policy change: exploring Germany and England in a comparative perspective

Education policy has undergone transformation in many countries over the last decade. In this article, we focus on the effects of the most significant international initiative in secondary education, which is the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). We analyse two countries that provide variation regarding the degree of change in their respective education policy-making due to this study; while Germany substantially reformed its education system in reaction to its mediocre PISA results, almost no change has been observed in England. As we show, alterations and shifts in ideas of education policy best account for such a change.     

The politics of PISA: The media,policy and public responses in Norway and England

Using the PISA 2015 releases in Norway and England, this article explores how PISA has been presented in the media and how the policy level has responded to the results. England will be used as an example for comparison. The article presents early media responses from the 20 most circulated daily newspapers in the two countries and discusses them in relation both to the national PISA reports in Norway and England, as well as the international report of the OECD. The media responses are further interpreted in light of previous research in both countries, with a particular focus upon Norway, where previous Ministers of Education have been interviewed about assessment policy and education reforms.     

The use (and misuse) of PISA in guiding policy reform: the case of Spain

In 2013 Spain introduced a series of educational reforms explicitly inspired by the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2012 results. These reforms were mainly implemented in secondary education – based upon the assumption that this is where Spain's educational problems lie. This paper questions this assumption by attempting to identify the point where Spanish children fall behind young people in other developed countries. Specifically, by drawing data from multiple international assessments, we are able to explore how cross-national differences in reading skills change as children age. Consideration is given to both the average level of achievement and the evolution of educational inequalities. Our conclusion is that policy-makers have focused their efforts on the wrong part of the education system; educational achievement is low in Spain (and educational inequalities large) long before children enter secondary school. This study therefore serves as a note of caution against simplistic interpretation of the PISA rankings.     

Fifteen years looking at the mirror: On the presence of PISA in education policy processes (Portugal, 2000‐2016)

This article describes and discusses what happens when knowledge for policy generated within PISA is received by its target audience: what have the Portuguese policy actors been doing with PISA data and analysis when they consider, express and justify their choices? Drawing on previous and current studies, using interview materials and formal and informal policy documents, as well as texts published in the written press, the article analyses two main phenomena related to the reception of PISA and how this has evolved between 2001 and 2012 in Portugal: the consolidation of PISA's credibility as a source for policy processes and texts; the emergence of new actors and modes of intervention in the production of knowledge for national policy, drawing on PISA. Finally, it presents an analysis of the reception of PISA 2015 in the Portuguese media, focusing on the interventions by political actors in the Portuguese daily and weekly written press. Two main elements emerge from our content analysis as the main common elements of that reception: the consecration of PISA's credibility; and the practices of qualification and disqualification of educational policies and perspectives. The article concludes by emphasising the regulatory role of PISA in Portuguese policy processes and the relevant contribution played by the politics of reception in legitimising this role.     

Fifteen years of research on PISA effects on education governance: A critical review

This article provides a literature review on the effects of the OECD's Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) on education governance and policy process across participating countries. This review seemed necessary because there has been a growing body of literature on this topic since 2003, especially since 2010, because this literature is not always well‐known and because the discourse on the so‐called ‘PISA shock’ remains important, even if it is more of a metaphor than a concept and may be politically partial. The article exploits a dataset of 87 references which show that PISA introduced major changes in the governance of education worldwide. Driven by soft power strategies and new policy transfers, this governance is based on data and measurement tools which redefine the scales of education policies. It also shows that PISA has a strong influence on a variety of national reforms, as illustrated in many case studies. However, this influence strongly depends on domestic policy contexts that scholars intended to capture through different theoretical frameworks. Nonetheless, few propose overarching theorisations of the political meaning of PISA effects on education governance and policy processes. The article concludes by stressing three main challenges for the subsequent studies on these PISA effects: better conceptualising these effects, preserving an epistemology of uncertainty in order to avoid taken for granted views and normalising the research on PISA effects not to perpetually and artificially rediscover its so‐called novelty.     

从PISA看国内语文阅读考试改革——以2002～2009年的上海阅读开放题为例

语文阅读考试改革向来是争论的焦点.本文在分析PISA阅读素养测试的基本特征的基础上,以PISA的阅读素养架构为蓝本,分析2002～2009这八年间上海中考语文阅读开放题,以此为突破口考察国内语文阅读考试存在的问题,探查语文阅读考试可能的改进方向.     

基于PISA测试结果的教育政策调整分析

PISA测试结果是影响参加国或地区调整教育政策的重要因素之一。这些影响主要包括公众对教育质量的关注及其形成的舆论压力,表现优异的参加国或地区可借鉴的成功经验等。研究发现,基于PISA测试结果的教育政策调整类型主要有四种:政策深化型、政策变革型、政策调适型和政策效仿型。     

The impact of PISA and the interrelation and development of assessment policy and assessment theory in Japan

PISA presents a new image for academic achievement, which has prompted Japanese education reforms over the past decade to innovate teaching and learning for ‘PISA-style literacy’. Supported by theoretical foundations, particularly with regard to the concept of ‘PISA literacy’ and ‘authentic assessment’, these reforms have accomplished progress in the focus on higher order competencies, such as application and the development of new assessment strategies. However, more recently, various critical discussions of ‘PISA literacy’ are underway in the Japanese academy. They interrogate it more critically and reveal the narrow emphasis on functional application and technical operation. Current assessment practices, which tend to fall into ‘criteria compliance’, are in urgent need of review. There is a need to extend the critical discussions in progress to the new assessment strategies. This paper responds to this, by considering the Japanese acceptance of ‘PISA literacy’ and its assessment, discussing the features and limitations.     

Competitive comparison and PISA bragging rights: sub-national uses of the OECD's PISA in Canada and the USA

Participation in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) has continuously expanded: from 43 systems in 2000 to 65 systems in the 2012 cycle, with 71 signed up for PISA 2015. There also has been a growth in sub-national participation, expanding PISA's reach beyond the nation-state. This paper explores sub-national PISA participation in Canada and the USA, asking how PISA is being used within sub-national education policy spaces. We draw on analysis of documents and data from interviews with officials at sub-national, national, and international levels. Findings illustrate some of the diverse motivations and uses of PISA, providing insights into the effects of PISA at the sub-national scale. As such, we argue that competitive comparison in education has deepened through the enhanced granularity of international large-scale assessment data to new scales beyond the nation-state.     

The uses of the national PISA results by Finnish officials in central government

In this article we attempt to analyse how OECD knowledge production is integrated with the process in which Finnish education policy takes shape. This is done by analysing the uses of the OECD PISA Study by Finnish central government officials. The main question posed is: How do these officials interpret the PISA results so as to justify the decisions made in Finnish education policy in the past or to point out new areas of development concerning basic education? The analysis shows that the interpretations of the PISA results tend to favour those responsible for actions within the central government. In the texts analysed, the scientificity of the PISA programme is presented as beyond question, while the direct usefulness of the research results for the further development of national education is also proclaimed. As to the specific results of PISA, the excellent learning outcomes of Finnish students are claimed to be due to educational reforms conducted and decisions made by the central government, whereas shortcomings and areas in which the officials see a need for improvement are argued to be dependent on the actions of other agents. Thus, the analysis shows that the conclusions drawn from the PISA results in texts representing the views of central government are biased and serve to justify its policy agenda.     

为生存而学习：PISA评价思想价值取向研究

伴随知识经济的到来，如何实现对人才培养质量的有效监控，以引导教育的健康发展，成为目前世界各国教育关注的焦点问题。经济合作与发展组织为了满足社会发展对人力资本的质量监控要求。克服以往教育对学生评价的不足与缺陷而开发实施的国际学生评价项目(PISA)从一个全新的角度展开了对人力资本的测量与评价。在2000年和2003年两次测试之后。其新颖、规范、科学的设计与严格的控制标准。引起了世界范围的广泛关注和强烈反响。PISA的评价理念与操作模式对我国当前正在进行的基础教育课程评价改革具有重要的启示和借鉴意义。     

Seeing education with one's own eyes and through PISA lenses: considerations of the reception of PISA in European countries

The paper addresses the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Program for International Student Assessment (PISA) as a public policy instrument, whose worldwide circulation is mediated by processes of reinterpretation, negotiation, and re-contextualization, where national, local, and international agencies intertwine. It is focused on the active reception of PISA in six European spaces (Francophone Belgium, France, Hungary, Portugal, Romania, and Scotland) along its first three cycles. The paper identifies two contrasting developments: the Program's divergent uses and its attractiveness in different social worlds. The paper gives particular attention to what is called the ‘update of reference societies’ in the context of national receptions of PISA. These ‘updates’ are analyzed as part of a composite process that involves domestic reasons, either related to current agendas for education or to deep historical factors, and injunctions related to PISA's rationale and PISA objects.     

The PISA calendar: Temporal governance and international large-scale assessments

Abstract

This article analyses international large-scale assessments in education from a temporal perspective. The article discusses and compares the different conceptions of time in the early international assessments conducted in the 1960s and 1970s by the IEA with the PISA studies conducted by the OECD from the year 2000 onwards. The paper argues that there has been a shift in the ways that the assessments structure time. The early IEA surveys were characterized by a relative slowness, lack of synchronization and lack of trend analyses. PISA, by contrast, is characterized by high pace, simultaneous publication of results around the world and regular and recurrent studies making the analysis of trends possible. The emergence of this new time regime, it is argued, has implications for how education is governed. At the transnational level, it strengthens the influence and importance of OECD as a significant policy actor. At the national level, as educational discourse and policy adapts to the temporalities of the PISA calendar, two kinds of effects can be distinguished. First, there is a tendency towards searching for “retrotopian” solutions for contemporary problems. Second, there is a tendency towards acceleration and short-term planning when it comes to educational reforms.     

PIRLS与PISA视域下的阅读课程改革

在阅读素养培育与测评方面,PISA与PIRLS为我们提供了参照,为我国大陆的阅读课程改革指明了方向。依据PISA与PIRLS,我们需要更加重视阅读的社会性、阅读乐趣和终身阅读能力的培养,要联系学生生活实际进行阅读材料选择,构建全面科学的阅读素养评价指标体系并完善阅读课程标准,加强开放题的编制与评分指导,综合考虑各种影响因素,系统进行阅读素养培育。